Speckhardt: 'Under God' Discriminates Against Atheists

The words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance twist the notion of America being indivisible, Roy Speckhardt of the atheist American Humanist Association said Wednesday on "America’s Forum" on Newsmax TV.

The American Humanist Association has teamed with a New Jersey family to sue a Garden State school district, arguing that the words under God discriminate against atheists and violate equal protection rights afforded by the Constitution.

"By putting 'under God' in there, it discriminates against a huge segment of society," Speckhardt said. "We're a minority, but we're a rapidly growing one."

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Speckhardt said he does not favor tossing the pledge altogether, just eliminating the reference to God. Religious liberty, he said, was one of the Founding Fathers' principles.

"There should be no litmus test on faith to be a patriotic American," according to Speckhardt. "Nontheist people like Pat Tillman, they are patriots too. We should remember that and we should make sure that we don't inadvertently create religious litmus test for patriotism."